


to behold or be held

by 26stars



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Brutal Goddess, Curse of Medusa, F/F, Goddess!May, Greek Mythology - Freeform, Greek god au, I promise you can read it either way, Mortal!Daisy, Orphan!Daisy, mentions of assault
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-12 00:33:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29126526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/26stars/pseuds/26stars
Summary: Daisy has been a priestess in the goddess Melinda's temple since she  was a girl. One decision may have changed all of that--and it is dangerous to gamble on the mercy of a goddess.For FlorchisAlso fills my femslash bingo square 'shame'
Relationships: Melinda May & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Melinda May/Skye | Daisy Johnson
Comments: 13
Kudos: 23
Collections: Women of the MCU





	to behold or be held

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Florchis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Florchis/gifts).



> So this was prompted by a fluff bingo square, but it is definitely not fluff...so I guess I'll be writing another fic for that ;)
> 
> Fair warning: Melinda is pretty brutal here.
> 
> Special thanks to smallblueandloud for helping me figure this one out!

“You were going to leave.”

“No! I wasn’t! I swear!”

“You listened to his words, and they poisoned you.”

“He…he confused me. Made me believe that you weren’t what you seemed. That you were keeping us, keeping _me_ here not to protect me, but…” Daisy trailed off, still unable to lift her head. The weight of the goddess’s gaze was too great.

“Do you remember where you were before?” the goddess asked, her voice making the ground tremble. “Was bringing you here not a kindness?”

The memories immediately flashed through Daisy’s mind—the fearful months she had spent an orphan in the unforgiving world of homelessness, the dangers she had escaped through luck alone until one day when a mysterious woman stepped in front of her, shielded her from men who would have harmed her, and instead carried her to the temple. The priestesses inside had taken Daisy in, cared for her, raised her, and trained her for all of her days since then, and Daisy had eventually taken vows that bound her for life…

“In my temple, all your needs are met, your safety guaranteed…” the goddess continued above her. “Why would you wish to leave?”

Daisy exhaled. “Because this place is a cage, too.”

As soon as she said the words, Daisy regretted them. She cowered lower, hoping for mercy.

Melinda’s sustained silence was punishment enough, and Daisy imagined the goddess glowering down at her.

“Birds of the air, birds of a cage—one kind always lives longer,” she eventually responded. “Now tell me, why did you come back?”

Daisy raised her head only enough to speak without her lips meeting the floor. “We were nearly to the city gates when I stopped. I was having second thoughts and hesitated, but he tried to drag me out before I’d made up my mind. He hurt me, and I realized that I already didn’t trust him…” The images came back to Daisy suddenly—the man’s frustrated scowl, the sharp edges in his words, the smoldering look in his eyes…

“Some onlookers came to my aid, and I was able to break free,” Daisy continued, thinking of the strangers who had rushed to help her—a priestess was not to be forced anywhere, so it was obvious who was the victim in that moment. “They held him off while I ran back here. I don’t know if he followed, but I don’t care. I never wish to see him again.”

“He could not have crossed the threshold to this temple—my enchantment prohibits it,” the goddess muttered. “But your story speaks of a scheme over time. Where then have you been meeting him?”

“In the marketplace, when I went to collect offerings,” Daisy confessed. “For weeks, we did not speak, but I felt him noticing me, and I liked it. Eventually, he would greet me. And then we would converse…”

“And then you were misled,” Melinda concluded coldly.

Daisy lowered her face until her brow pressed the ground. “Yes.”

The ensuing silence blew like sand against her skin.

“One does not break a vow to a goddess without consequence,” Melinda finally said, and Daisy squeezed her eyes shut.

“Please have mercy,” she whimpered.

“Why should I?” Melinda sounded utterly dispassionate.

Tears pricked Daisy’s eyes. “Because I came back. Because I see that I was wrong. I see that _you_ are worthy, and that he—that men like him—are not a way of rescue. They’re the reason I needed yours.”

“And?”

Daisy took a deep breath, banking on her last opportunity for kindness. “And because you are gracious. And you love me.”

The goddess made her wait a long time before she spoke again.

“I do, don’t I?”

Daisy yelped as a hand suddenly seized her by the hair and hauled her to her feet. The goddess, taller, brighter, and more beautiful than any woman—any person—that Daisy had ever looked upon started dispassionately back at her, contemplating what was surely every kind of pain in Daisy’s eyes.

“What consequence do _you_ think you should have?”

Melinda was so beautiful that it nearly hurt to look, and Daisy felt like a worm on a hook, dangling before her.

It made her last request appropriately humble.

“Curse me. Let me be marked, humiliated. But please, do not cast me from your presence. And do not send me out to be at the mercy of men and all manner of predators.”

Melinda shook her head, unsmiling. “No, Daisy, that would break my heart as well. But you nearly cast yourself out.”

“Yes,” Daisy admitted again, the tears finally escaping. She still could not look away from Melinda’s splendor. “I was foolish.”

_So foolish._

Melinda’s chin lowered in a minute nod. “You were also overpowered. No one will ever do that again.”

The goddess abruptly dropped her, and Daisy crashed to her knees on the marble floor. She risked a glance up and saw the goddess rubbing a torn lock of Daisy’s hair between her fingers.

“Your hair is rather lovely, and it will be a portion of your price. It will now be your weapon and your hindrance to ever being pursued by a man again.”

A sensation on her scalp made Daisy shiver. It suddenly felt like invisible hands were twisting her hair into coils, and she reached up to touch her head. Her fingers found only cold scales, and she cried out in horror.

“What have you done?!”

The light that had burned her eyes was fading—Melinda was returning to whatever realm she came from, but her voice seemed only to grow louder.

“Until your death, any man that looks upon you will be powerless to hurt you, pursue you, or even behold you. And to your sisters here as well, you will never be the same again. You doubted my words once, but you will never forget these.”

Silence abruptly consumed the room as the light and Melinda disappeared completely. Cautiously, Daisy’s fingers gripped a coil and pulled it in front of her face, only to find a snake’s head staring back at her. It opened its mouth and hissed.

Daisy opened her mouth and screamed.

**Author's Note:**

> The true story of Medusa is actually pretty heartbreaking. You can read it [here](https://www.ancient-origins.net/myths-legends-europe/legend-medusa-and-gorgons-002773), but warnings for mentions of assault/r*pe. I didn't have the heart to put Daisy through that, but the vibe is still here I think. Also, some of you might know but for those who don't, the goddess Athena (who curses Medusa) has the Roman name Minerva, which isn't _almost_ "Melinda" but it bares an interesting similarity.


End file.
